what you can expect to find in Charlotte. (Concord, Monroe: section 8, transplants)

[Chromekitty]

Originally Posted by vindaloo

I do remember some of the good ole days. But, I also remember in the late 60s and early 70s when the murder rate was almost twice the number today and the population was one fourth. But, it was confined to those bad neighborhoods. We didn't need to lock doors or worry about things where I lived and it was on the westside.

yes, yes...I remember! So many of the factors have changed haven't they?
Kinda bittersweet....

[Chromekitty]

Originally Posted by Carolina Blue

I'm sorry but you're wrong. Crime is going down. It has gone down significantly since Chief Monroe took office. What's he's done has been very impressive, particullary when you look at the murder rate, the one stat that truly valadates the fact that crime has declined.

Link 1: News-Talk 1110 WBT | News Story: Police in Charlotte report big crime drop since January

Link 2: Charlotte-Mecklenburg police get high marks in new poll - CharlotteObserver.com

Link 3: Stats show Charlotte's crime on the decline

Monroe hasn't done anything that hasn't been done before is SOME capacity in this city at one time or another. He actually hasn't done anything but sign off on something that Brass told him needed to be done.

Crime is shifting and gang activity is up tremendously, the highest it has ever been actually.

You can attempt to sugarcoat it all you want to, but the truth is crime is still rampant and no better than it has been in recent years. And we won't even get into the lack of confidence and the fear factor in this city.

But, none the less the intent of this thread was great and the OP made a lot of good points (and put a lot of effort into it) and I am not going to turn it into a debate.

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by TheEmissary

CouponJack - The "cost of living" to most people's minds include property taxes too, unfortunately! I think you might be referring to the lack of taxes on clothing and food in NJ. No one can convince me that if ShopRite and Pathmark had stores in NC, that Harris Teeter and Food Lion wouldn't be in "dire financial straits" tho'. The savings on property tax and car insurance far outweigh for me, any niggling taxes I pay, on all the things NC taxes, that NJ doesn't! Plus my non-taxable pension is "extra icing" on the NC cake!

As for the Pizza, I think that most people from the Northeast had a "favorite local pizza place" and would "decry" with as much vigor, having to eat a pizza made two blocks away from their favorite place as much as all the ones found in Charlotte. My only complaint is that the Charlotte area prices of decent pizzas remind me of NJ taxes!

I agree with you right down the line on the taxes, Emissary. The 2 Ingles supermarkets out here are proving you right as far as groceries go, too.

[TheEmissary]

Originally Posted by southbound_295

I agree with you right down the line on the taxes, Emissary. The 2 Ingles supermarkets out here are proving you right as far as groceries go, too.

southbound - Please feel free to advise Ingles to go a bit more east! Now that Food Lion is acquiring Bi-Lo, we need more alternatives to the status quo. My half gallon of Half & Half will surely go from Bi-Lo's $3.99 to $4.39 as soon as the Food Lion switch-over occurs! Good Food - Good Neighbors...Good God!

[Carolina Blue]

Originally Posted by Chromekitty

Monroe hasn't done anything that hasn't been done before is SOME capacity in this city at one time or another. He actually hasn't done anything but sign off on something that Brass told him needed to be done.

Crime is shifting and gang activity is up tremendously, the highest it has ever been actually.

You can attempt to sugarcoat it all you want to, but the truth is crime is still rampant and no better than it has been in recent years. And we won't even get into the lack of confidence and the fear factor in this city.

But, none the less the intent of this thread was great and the OP made a lot of good points (and put a lot of effort into it) and I am not going to turn it into a debate.

Monroe's focus on patrolling is vey different from what Chief Stephens did. I'm not sugarcoating anything. The fact is, crime is down. Period. The numbers don't bear out your claims. Especially the low murder rate.

It seems most people in this city disagree with you: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/top...ry/965772.html

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by Chromekitty

Crime isn't going down, the types of crimes we are seeing is what is shifting. Breaking into cars things like that, stealing a bicycle are considered neighborhood select but gang activity is not. They are very mobile. They are even creeping out into the areas just outside of Charlotte. Charlotte is a major thorough fare for drug activity with our highways laid out as they are. Not to mention the distance between Miami and NYC.

There are those who are afraid to go out of their homes, I don't want to diminish that and when we have our very own LEO's telling us to stay at home in the evenings, that does carry some weight. But there was a time when NONE of this type of activity was even thought about, much less feared. Charlotte is a good town but has seen much better days, at one time someone posted a thread what do you love most about Charlotte, I didn't reply there, but my reply would have been, my memories of what a great city this once was.

Crime is definitely going down, check the stats.

I understand your frustation and sadness over how much things have changed, I really do. I remember fondly the days when you would NEVER have heard the term "gang" and "Charlotte" in the same sentence, and it wasn't that long ago. The fact that they are here now ticks me off immensely. But you have to give credit where credit is due, our new police chief IS getting those numbers down

Charlotte was great then, pre-gangs, but it's still great now, just in different ways.

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by TheEmissary

southbound - Please feel free to advise Ingles to go a bit more east! Now that Food Lion is acquiring Bi-Lo, we need more alternatives to the status quo. My half gallon of Half & Half will surely go from Bi-Lo's $3.99 to $4.39 as soon as the Food Lion switch-over occurs! Good Food - Good Neighbors...Good God!

Emissary, I only hope that the produce at your Food Lions doesn't look like the produce in these Food Lions, yet management apparently is clueless as to why nearly everyone now goes to Ingles.

I suggest that you & everyone near you access the Ingles website frequently &, using your zip code, search for the closest Ingles. If they see the hits continually, it might send them a message. Don't worry that you're in Monroe. They opened a supermarket in Kings Mountain, which is equally unfashionable.

I did read that they have a policy not to open a store more than 250 miles from Asheville, so you're safe, they'll come.

Better yet, plan some daytips with friends & stop in at the Kings Mountain or Dallas supermarkets on your way home & get advantage cards. That will tell them that you are willing customers, living in Monroe. (You'll feel like you made a quick trip north when you step in the store.)

I do think that Ingles &/or Publix are just waiting for the Bi-Lo sale to be finalized. Food Lion is severely wounded out here. If they take on the Bi-Lo debt, they won't be able to withstand Ingles or Publix entering Charlotte. Since Ingles is already in the metro, my guess is that it will be Ingles. However, Publix might come up too. Who knows?

There is an Ingles thread that tells about Ingles crushing Food Lion in Asheville. I suspect that they will be the ones to go into Charlotte.

[etacarinae]

As there are Ingles locations in Albemarle , Lexington , Shelby and I believe , somewhere in Gaston County.

[TheEmissary]

Originally Posted by southbound_295

Emissary, I only hope that the produce at your Food Lions doesn't look like the produce in these Food Lions, yet management apparently is clueless as to why nearly everyone now goes to Ingles.

I suggest that you & everyone near you access the Ingles website frequently &, using your zip code, search for the closest Ingles. If they see the hits continually, it might send them a message. Don't worry that you're in Monroe. They opened a supermarket in Kings Mountain, which is equally unfashionable.

I did read that they have a policy not to open a store more than 250 miles from Asheville, so you're safe, they'll come.

Better yet, plan some daytips with friends & stop in at the Kings Mountain or Dallas supermarkets on your way home & get advantage cards. That will tell them that you are willing customers, living in Monroe. (You'll feel like you made a quick trip north when you step in the store.)

I do think that Ingles &/or Publix are just waiting for the Bi-Lo sale to be finalized. Food Lion is severely wounded out here. If they take on the Bi-Lo debt, they won't be able to withstand Ingles or Publix entering Charlotte. Since Ingles is already in the metro, my guess is that it will be Ingles. However, Publix might come up too. Who knows?

There is an Ingles thread that tells about Ingles crushing Food Lion in Asheville. I suspect that they will be the ones to go into Charlotte.

southbound - From your lips to God's ear! I'd love to have the Bi-Lo here in Monroe taken over by Ingles. It's funny....the other day I mentioned to the cashier that Food Lion was in the process of trying to acquire Bi-Lo and he was absolutely stunned by the thought....and not in a good way! The average employee probably has no idea this transaction is likely to happen in the near future. I doubt that Food Lion will convert all of the Bi-Lo's over. It would certainly behoove Ingles to strategically purchase a few of them to establish themselves in the Charlotte Metro area. Competition would be welcome in the area for sure!

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by TheEmissary

southbound - From your lips to God's ear! I'd love to have the Bi-Lo here in Monroe taken over by Ingles. It's funny....the other day I mentioned to the cashier that Food Lion was in the process of trying to acquire Bi-Lo and he was absolutely stunned by the thought....and not in a good way! The average employee probably has no idea this transaction is likely to happen in the near future. I doubt that Food Lion will convert all of the Bi-Lo's over. It would certainly behoove Ingles to strategically purchase a few of them to establish themselves in the Charlotte Metro area. Competition would be welcome in the area for sure!

Emissary, I dont know if Ingles would buy a Bi-Lo to convert it. They seem to be building supermarkets now & apparently are replacing some of the older grocery stores with supermarkets which also have the gas pumps. Compare Foods might buy it though.

Food Lion will surely be required to divest a certain number of properties. They may pull out of some of these stores out here. Ingles is killing them here on the western edge of the metro area. There are Food Lions that regularly have no more than 2 dozen cars in the lots.

However, I could see Ingles & possibly Publix moving in after Food Lion takes on Bi-Lo's debt. Keep in mind Ingles & Publix are competing right down I 85 in Spartanburg & Greenville.

I don't see Charlotte having less choice for groceries next year, I'm just not sure who the players will be. I just don't see this coming down the way that Food Lion thinks it will.

Let's see, Ingles already ran them out of parts of Asheville. When Ingles built a supermarket in Kings Mountain nothing was done to clean up the Food Lions, get decent produce, or even remotely compete on prices. The supermarket is also drawing from surrounding towns. I hear from Food Lion employees that management seems clueless why business is so bad (Oh, & the employees shop at Ingles, too.)

Once they are saddled with the Bi-Lo debt, how well can they compete if another big player moves into Charlotte?